I’m a wheelchair dancer – I won’t let my disability limit me

Nina Alexandridou is not afraid to get big fluctuations in life.

And as a disabled dancer, the millennial often takes those swings around the pole with the support of her wheelchair.

“When I do pole dancing, I feel beautiful,” Alexandridou, 28, a PhD candidate from Athens, Greece, tells The Post exclusively.

“I feel free to make mistakes and challenge my body with extreme movements and poses.”

Viral footage of her sitting and assisted spins around the glow stick has garnered over 8.3 million hits on TikTok.

“I believe this dance completely connects you with your body,” she said, “and constantly challenges you to push your personal boundaries.”

Alexandridou chose not to reveal the nature of her injury to The Post, but says “I’ve been disabled for as long as I can remember.”

She is among the number of athletes defying able-bodied prejudice around the world.

Like the 2024 Paralympic Games, as paralyzed Canadian ice hockey player-turned-rower Jacob Wassermann, 24, Alexandridou uses her talents as both a pole dancer and a CrossFitter to break down barriers of exclusion in the world of sport.

Twelve-time pole vault world champion Greta Pontarelli, a 70-year-old from Southern California, previously told The Post that their favorite pastime has its roots in inclusion.

“Pole jumping has something for everyone,” said the age- and gravity-defying grandmother. “It’s a sport that requires a lot of flexibility and strength.”

Alexandridou first gave the pole a whirl about 10 months ago.

“At first it was quite difficult and I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it,” she admitted. “But I was determined.â€

Under the tutelage of instructors Dikaia and Christina Papadimitriou at House of Pole, Alexandridou – alongside her disabled and disabled classmates – is treated as an equal rather than a disabled person.

“I had a lot of limitations in the exercises because a lot of them require functional use of the legs,” Alexandridou said. “But my teachers were constantly asking for modifications or different poses for me to succeed.”

“I kept getting better every time.”

And it doesn’t hurt that she’s trained as an adaptive CrossFit athlete for the past eight years.

“CrossFit is the reason I get up in the morning,” Alexandridou said. “I managed to become the first disabled CrossFitter from Greece to compete in a European CrossFit competition.”

The pink-haired powerhouse is currently preparing to compete in the 2024 Wodeclona games – billed as Europe’s most comprehensive international CrossFit competition.

But her impressive feats are not always appreciated.

“The most common negative comment I get is that I’m pretending to be disabled or that my injury isn’t that important,” admitted Alexandridou, who can stand and sometimes walks with a cane.

“I don’t blame them for thinking that way because they don’t understand what disability is,” she said. “What happens to my body is my injury and is not something foreign that needs to be explained – it is part of human diversity.”

“Just because I can walk doesn’t mean I can’t use a wheelchair,” added the inclusive educator. “The wheelchair does not limit me. It is a means of dignity. It is my emancipation.â€

It’s also not what makes Alexandridou an inspirational icon.

“I don’t want to inspire others just because I’m disabled,” she insisted. “I hate inspiration porn” objectifying disabled bodies to inspire non-disabled people.

“If I can inspire you in any way, I want to inspire you to help reduce [ableist] barriers”, Alexandridou added.

“Let’s create a society that doesn’t exclude anyone based on how they look, think or behave.”